When they threw open the balcony doors and looked past the four-meter concrete walls, the air left Reian’s lungs.
Nobody could speak.
Down in the main street, a full military convoy had arrived.
Three heavy army trucks were parked in a line, their headlights cutting through the dark night.
Soldiers in full gear were lined up behind metal barricades, firing their rifles rapidly into a massive, surging crowd of the dead.
The noise was deafening—a non-stop roar of gunfire that echoed off the buildings.
For a split second, Reian felt a massive wave of relief.
The army was here.
They were going to be saved.
But within less than a minute, that hope shattered.
The crowd of zombies was just too big.
They didn’t care about the bullets hitting them; they just kept crawling over each other like a wave of ants.
The monsters slammed into the metal barricades, knocking the soldiers to the ground.
Screams of pure terror cut through the gunfire as the military line completely collapsed.
Right before their eyes, the soldiers were ripped apart.
And the worst part was how fast it happened.
Men who were just fighting for their lives stood back up seconds later, their eyes bloodshot and their jaws snapping at their own comrades.
Suddenly, one of the military trucks took a direct hit from a rogue grenade or a leaking fuel tank.
It exploded into a massive, violent ball of fire, lighting up the entire street in a sick orange glow.
Reian quickly pulled Silya and Silvia back inside and slammed the balcony doors shut, pulling the curtains.
The grim reality sank in deep.
There was no cavalry coming.
They were completely on their own.
A little while later, the adrenaline wore off, and reality hit their stomachs.
They were starving.
The group started tearing the massive house apart, checking every single cabinet, drawer, and closet for anything they could use.
After twenty minutes of searching, Silya called everyone into the kitchen.
Her face was pale, and her hands were trembling as she leaned against the counter.
“Guys…
there’s literally no food here,” Silya said, her voice cracking.
“The pantry is totally empty.
The fridge is dead.
There is absolutely nothing to eat or drink in this entire place.
What are we supposed to do?”
Reian looked over at Flame, who was leaning against the wall, staring at the floor.
Reian took a deep breath and turned to the girls.
“Flame and I will go out and find food.
There has to be something nearby.
You two stay here, keep the front doors locked, and watch over the little girl.
She’s finally asleep in the bedroom, and she’s terrified.”
Silya looked like she wanted to argue, her eyes full of worry, but she knew they didn’t have a choice.
You can’t survive an apocalypse on an empty stomach.
She nodded tightly.
please be careful.
Don’t die out there.”
Once midnight hit and the streets quieted down a bit, Reian and Flame slipped out through the back door.
They moved through the shadows of the tall concrete wall and stepped into the dark, silent night, keeping their weapons gripped tight.
After creeping down a couple of dark alleys, Reian leaned close to Flame and whispered, “Should we hit a grocery store first, and then check the police station?”
Flame shook his head, his eyes scanning the dark rooftops.
“No.
Let’s hit the police station first and grab some real guns.
If we have actual firepower, getting food and medicine later will be a hundred times safer.
Right now, we’re bringing knives to a gunfight.”
Reian had to admit he was right.
They sneaked through the shadows, freezing every time they heard a distant groan, until they finally reached the local police station.
The front glass doors were smashed to pieces, and dried blood stained the lobby floor.
They crept past the front desk and found the weapon locker room.
The heavy metal door had been pried open, likely by fleeing officers.
On a large wooden table in the center, a few weapons were left behind in the rush.
“Look,” Reian whispered, his heart hammering.
“Let’s grab two rifles, two pistols, and every single box of bullets we can stuff into these bags.”
They started working immediately, their hands moving fast.
They shoved heavy ammunition boxes into their backpacks, trying not to make a sound.
The weight of the bags grew heavy, but it felt good to finally have real weapons.
But just as they turned around to head for the exit, Reian’s bulky backpack brushed against the edge of a metal desk.
A pair of heavy steel handcuffs slid off the paperwork and hit the floor with a loud, ringing CLANG.
The sharp sound cut through the dead silence of the station like thunder.
Reian froze, his blood turning to ice.
For three seconds, nothing happened.
Then, a chorus of guttural, hungry growls erupted from the dark hallways upstairs and down the basement steps.
“Move, now!” Flame hissed, drawing his katana.
They bolted out of the room and into the main lobby, but zombies were already pouring through the smashed front entrance, blocking their path.
And right in the middle of the pack was something that made Reian’s stomach turn.
It was a mutated zombie.
It was much larger than the others, its muscles bulging unnaturally under gray, decaying skin, and it moved with terrifying, freakish speed.
The moment its yellow eyes locked onto them, it sprinted forward on all fours like a rabid animal, knocking regular zombies out of its way.
Reian quickly pulled out one of the pistols they had just grabbed, noticing it had a silencer attached to the barrel.
He raised it with shaking hands, took aim at the monster’s head, and pulled the trigger.
Pfft.
The gun clicked softly, but the creature dodged to the side with unnatural reflexes.
Miss.
Reian fired again, sweating spinning through his eyes.
Miss.
Panicking as the distance closed, Reian lowered his aim and fired three times straight at the monster’s legs.
The mutated zombie stumbled hard, crashing into a metal filing cabinet.
But it didn’t drop.
It just let out a louder, angrier roar, dragging its mangled leg and barely slowing down.
Before it could lung at Reian’s throat, Flame leaped through the air.
With two lightning-fast, brutal swings of his katana, Flame cleanly severed both of the monster’s arms at the shoulders.
Before the armless creature could even process what happened, Flame spun on his heel and brought his blade across its neck, taking its head off in one clean, decisive cut.
The body thudded heavily against the floor.
But there was absolutely no time to breathe.
Dozens of regular zombies were now flooding into the station, completely attracted by the commotion and the smell of fresh blood.
“Flame, this way!
Run!” Reian shouted, pointing toward a broken emergency exit on the side of the building.
“There’s another grocery store right across the street on the opposite side!”
They ran for their lives, bursting through the side door and sprinting across the cracked asphalt of the dark road.
They kicked open the glass door of the small grocery store, not even caring about the noise anymore.
They moved like lightning through the dark aisles, grabbing every canned soup, protein bar, box of medicine, and water bottle they could cram into the spaces around the ammo boxes in their backpacks.
With their bags completely bursting at the seams, they ran as fast as their legs could carry them back toward the safe house, checking behind them every five seconds.
They finally bolted through the large iron gates of the estate, completely out of breath, and slammed the heavy front doors shut, throwing the deadbolts into place.
Reian leaned his head against the door, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.
“Silya!
Silvia!
We’re back!
We got food and guns!” Reian called out, his voice echoing in the large foyer.
No answer.
The house was completely dead silent.
Reian’s smile faded, and a horrible feeling grew in his gut.
“Silya?” he called out again, louder this time.
Still, nothing.
They quickly checked the living room—empty.
They ran to the kitchen—completely bare.
Silya and Silvia were nowhere to be found.
Suddenly, a strange, muffled noise echoed from a closed guest bedroom down the far end of the hallway.
It didn’t sound like scratching, but someone or something was definitely inside.
Reian and Flame exchanged a terrified, breathless look.
Reian gripped his newly found rifle, his knuckles turning white.
He walked up to the heavy wooden door, his heart pounding in his ears, and slowly turned the brass handle.
He pushed it open.
The moment the door swung wide, Reian froze in absolute shock, his jaw dropping.
Next to him, the color completely drained from Flame’s face, and his sword nearly slipped from his hand.
Hey guys, I am so sorry for missing Thursday’s update!
I ended up falling really sick, which is why I couldn’t finish it on time.
I’m finally feeling a bit better, so here is the new chapter for you guys today on Saturday.
Thank you so much for understanding and waiting for me.
I really hope you enjoy the chapter!